I’m not getting the traffic I feel I need at the Etsy shop. And then to see stuff featured on the front page that isn’t even as good as some of mine? Depressing. I mean, we can be as lofty as we like and claim we sell on Etsy for the art, but unless you make more at a “real job” or have hit the lotto, we’re in it for the money. Noble desires for art aside, we need the money to continue that art. Shrink plastic and resin for me aren’t cheap. At times I debate the wisdom of even having an Etsy store, but honestly, I think I’d go insane if I didn’t. I don’t drive, so I can’t easily do local shows, and I can’t seem to find a regular partner who is willing to even do the local shows who is willing to drive. It’s very frustrating. I live on a seriously restricted budget (less than $800 USD per month) and when something sells, that pays for me to create.

I feel my prices are fair. If anything, too low. I had some people really chew me out recently over the buttons. The general opinion was, that I was selling too cheap at around $1 a button. I’d put a lot of work into them (I do agree with that) and they were unique and much better than the average shrink plastic button. So I raised my prices to $2 a button. I felt this was fair, I’d seen hand drawn buttons on Etsy, sold as a single button that weren’t even as good as mine selling for $3 each. If I get into shank buttons, my prices will adjust for those.

So, my next step in my opinion (besides a project idea that I’m hoping to bring out soon along with resin bangles and rings) has to do with ads. Not just putting mine out there, but advertisers here. So, I’ve been searching for blogs with decent traffic, and other places, to put ads. I’ve got a few ideas on where to put some. Some are free, some I’ll be paying for, which I feel is worth it, if it drives traffic up.

As for ads on here, this is the deal. Since my blog is so new, and since I don’t have great traffic, I’m simply looking for exchange. I’ll post your banner, if you post mine. On the left, or the right, and it’d be visible at all times. Interested?